Wildlife Wednesday: Catching a Black Racer

Earlier this summer we had an unexpected visitor in our backyard. I walked by the back door one morning and glanced out at the frog pond. I noticed a strange shadow in the corner beside the pond and almost dismissed it, until it moved. That was when I realized that the shadow was actually a decent sized snake! The Black Racer blended perfectly into the silhouette of trees cast by the morning sun.

This was my first time actually getting up close with a black racer, I’ve only ever seen them slithering off a trail. They are extremely quick and elusive so of course I had to try and catch it.

My adrenaline was pumping because I was so excited to catch a new species of snake so it took me longer than usual to grab it. After getting bitten, I picked it up and showed it to the kids before we relocated it into the woods behind our house.

Please, if you see a snake and aren’t sure what type it is, just leave it alone if possible. They won’t bother you if you don’t bother them. Until next time, happy herping ya’ll!